Clubhouse Insider Boston Red Sox News

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DUNEDIN, Fla. -- As Daniel Bard walked to the Red Sox' clubhouse after the sixth inning today, the scoreboard at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium reinforced that he had allowed five runs to the Blue Jays.

Bard felt like he pitched far better than that.

"Today was the first day that I can say I felt like an actual starting pitcher, not like a reliever starting," Bard said after an 85-pitch, six-inning effort. "I used all four pitches, a steady mix of all four, didn't favor one, and I really felt confident about it."

But the question remains, how confident are the Red Sox in Bard as a starter?

If Bobby Valentine's postgame comments were any indication, Bard (Herald photo by Stuart Cahill) took a big step toward nailing down a rotation spot.

"Overall, I liked everything," Valentine said. "Had some tough breaks, I thought. Worked his way out of jams. Had some pitches that could've been called strikes, didn't let it affect him. Threw all of his pitches today. His changeup at times was devastating. His slider was sharp at times. What was there not to like other than the five runs on the board? And I think some of them could've been prevented."

Bard is competing with fellow reliever Alfredo Aceves, lefty Felix Doubront and veteran Aaron Cook for the final two spots in the rotation. He allowed one run in the second, third and fourth innings, then two in the sixth. He estimated that he threw about 10 changeups, one of which was lined to left field by Adam Lind for a leadoff double in the fourth inning.

Told of Bard's self-assessment, namely that he felt like a starter, Valentine agreed.

"And he looked like one," Valentine said. "And I liked him in between innings. I liked how he was responding to things. I thought it was a really good look today. he worked runners when they were on base. He got ground balls when he needed to. Got some swings and misses when he needed to, too. I just like what I see. That's good stuff."

Bard has been fully committed, both physically and mentally, to making the transition from reliever to starter. That said, the uncertainty of not knowing his role is an inescapable thought, particularly on the days between starts.

"For a little while it kind of gets where you wonder and wonder (what's going to happen)," Bard said. "But I've just kind of gotten to a point where it's out of my hands. I'm going to put the work in and do the best I can every fifth day out there right now, and if that shifts to a bullpen role, I'll do the same thing. But I've tried to kind of just ... I mean, like everything in life, if you can't control it, it ain't worth worrying about."

With a little more than a week remaining until the Red Sox break camp, each starter candidate figures to have at least one more outing. Given that Bard is attempting to make a switch to a role he has never played at the major-league level, the reality of the situation for the Red Sox may be exactly what they saw today: Some positives, some negatives, and a lot of unknowns.

And if the Red Sox determine that their grand experiment isn't going well enough to warrant a spot in the rotation for Bard?

"You have to ask me that if it happens," Bard said. "Right now, I'm focusing on the positive and what I did in this past outing, what I did well, what I can do better, and move forward from there."